


Can We Get A Puppy?

by basketcase1880



Series: Family Bonding [2]
Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-14
Updated: 2019-11-14
Packaged: 2021-01-30 15:08:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21430213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/basketcase1880/pseuds/basketcase1880
Summary: A fix-it/missing scenes fic from Monday and Tuesday's episodes.We saw Ben, Lola, and Jay at the club (even Whitney) but no Callum. I'd like to think that Callum had volunteered to watch Lexi instead. And Lexi, of course, manages to win Callum round to the dog idea she asked Ben a few weeks back.
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Series: Family Bonding [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1544998
Comments: 6
Kudos: 50





	Can We Get A Puppy?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gatergirl79](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gatergirl79/gifts).

> This spawned from a discussion in a tumblr group chat, which gatergirl79 made even better. So I ran with it, hopefully it makes sense.  
Also, can be seen as a sequel to 'Why Do We Wear A Poppy?' but can also be read as a stand-alone.

“Want to be my plus one to this party later?” Ben suddenly asked Callum over breakfast. “The one Mel’s holdin’ for Lou and Sharon.”

“I dunno,” Callum replied hesitantly. “But that don’ mean I’m stoppin’ ya from going. Louise is your sister…”

“Half-sister,” Ben interrupted. “But it’d be our first time out as official boyfriends…”

“I think I heard Whit talkin’ about going,” Callum countered. “I don’t want to risk causin’ a scene. Y’know what she can be like when alcohol is involved.”

“I just want to show off my boyfriend,” Ben pouted, and Callum smiled at Ben’s childish antics before placing a placating kiss to his lips.

“You know I’m not one for parties, Ben,” Callum said, almost pleading. “Tell ya what, I’ll watch Lexi. Let you, Lola, and Jay got to the party. It is a Mitchell do after all, an’ you and Jay can act as the head of the family an’ all. What d’ya say?”

“I’ll talk to Lo’ about it,” Ben said, seeing Callum’s point. “Doesn’t mean I’m happy with it though.”

“That’s all I ask, Ben,” Callum smiled before finishing his coffee. “Now, I need to go downstairs. We’ve got an early appointment and I want to make sure everything is in order.”

“Alright, babe,” Ben said, pulling Callum down by the tie for another kiss. “I’ll let ya know what Lola says later. Ya might need to pick Lex up from school, too.”  
  


“No problem,” Callum smiled as he fixed his tie. “Talk to ya later.”

Ben watched Callum leave for work and groaned in frustration. The things that suit did to him…

***

Over at number 45, Kathy was barking orders out as if she was the one organising the party. Lola looked as though she was about to say something, particularly about Lexi as she had said Lexi’s name a couple of times. But Kathy didn’t appear to be listening. So, when Kathy’s rant ended, Ben took Lola aside to discuss Callum’s suggestion.

“Callum ain’t comin’ to the party,” Ben began, and Lola looked as though she was about to demand why when Ben continued. “Ya knows he doesn’t really do parties, we ‘ad to drag ‘im to Bex’s party. So, he’s offered to watch Lex. Let us attend the party and not have to pay for someone to watch Lex.”

“Aww, that would be great,” Lola smiled. “He’s already on the approved list of people who can collect Lexi. Wait a minute, you sure you didn’t talk him into watching Lex for us?”

“Of course, Lo’,” Ben retorted, scandalised that Lola would even suggest that. “I practically begged him to come. I want to show off my boyfriend to everyone.”

“Alright,” Lola said with a smirk. “Go and let loverboy know before we begin ‘Operation Distract Louise’. I’ll let Jay know.”

“Thanks, Lo’,” Ben smiled as he dashed off to see if Callum was available to let him know Lola’s decision.

***

Turns out Callum was still with his early appointment when Ben went to see him, so, Ben decided to text Callum.

**BEN: Hey babe, Lola said you’re good to go collecting Lexi later. Apparently, you are already on the approved list to collect her. Might pop in at lunch. Or after school. Let me know when you’re free x.**

* * *

Callum always had time for the customers, it’s why Jay hired him in the first place. But at times he just wished there were other staff members who could manage some of the cases, especially when it was the death of a child (like this one). Child funerals always hit him hard as they could just as easily be Lexi or Ollie.

So, when he finally got the chance to check his phone, he smiled at the text from Ben. Of course, Lola would make sure he was on Lexi’s approved adults list, she’s been their biggest cheerleader since the shooting. But the fact that Lola trusted him enough with her daughter pulled at his heartstrings.

Callum decided to text Ben back. As much as he wanted to hear his voice, Callum wasn’t sure how busy he would be with whatever Kathy wanted him to do for the party, and he didn’t want to run the risk of Kathy’s wrath coming down on him.

**CALLUM: I’ll text when Lex and I get back to the flat. Got lots of paperwork to sort through for the funeral this morning, so I’m just grabbing a sandwich to eat while I work. Tell Lola thanks. And thank you to both of you for trusting me with Lexi’s care x.**

So, Callum nipped back up to the flat and grabbed himself a sandwich, a bottle of water and a packet of crisps for lunch so he could be able to work through lunch and close up a little early so he could pick Lexi up from school.

* * *

Callum was stood outside the school again, only this time there was no Ben or no Mick to chat with. He was still under the scrutiny of the ‘mum-squad’ and would take one of the Taylors being there to pick up Mac and Mia. But alas he was on his own.

The bell rang, and a smile crept onto Callum’s face, he couldn’t wait to spend some time with Lexi. She was an amazing little girl, who was the perfect blend of her mum and dad, and because of that, he couldn’t wait to spend time with her.

“Callum!” Lexi called again as she ran towards him, wrapping her arms around his waist once she reached him. “How come you’re picking me up today?”

“I asked if I could,” Callum smiled as he took Lexi’s book bag in one hand and her tiny hand in the other. “Let your mum, dad, and Jay attend your aunt Louise’s party. Plus, we’ll get to have lots of fun together. We can watch Disney films and get pizza for dinner.”

“Yay,” Lexi cheered, and they began to walk back towards the Square. As they were passing the park, they saw a little girl playing with her dog and it gave Lexi an idea. “Callum, can we get a dog?”

Callum stopped in his tracks and looked at Lexi. “Are you forgettin’ what your dad said the last time you asked about a dog?”

“He said no,” Lexi answered, her eyes looking down at the ground. “But that was for at home. Can we get a dog that stays with you?”

“That’s a big question to ask, princess,” Callum explained, leading Lexi over to the bench. “I’d need to check with your pops that I can have a dog in the flat, and I’d need to make sure Stuart would be okay with a dog,” Lexi’s nose scrunched up at the mention of Stuart. “And we’d need to figure out what to do with the dog during the day while I’m at work.”

“That’s easy,” Lexi said, a determined look on her face. “The dog could go with daddy. All he does is sit at the garage or the car shop all day.”

“I’m sure your dad does more than that,” Callum said with a smile at Lexi’s description of Ben’s job. “But we would still need to ask him.”

“Okay,” Lexi agreed. “Can we get iced buns on the way back home?”

“Yeah,” Callum agreed. “But we’re going to my flat, and I’ll tell you what, I’ll let your dad know we’re back, and we can look at some of the dogs online that need new homes. It’s probably best we go for a rescue dog rather than a puppy. We really don’t have the time to train a puppy.”

“So, it would be like giving a doggy a home from care? Like in Tracey Beaker,” Lexi asked.

“Yeah, exactly like that,” Callum smiled as he directed Lexi into the café to buy two iced buns.

* * *

Once Callum and Lexi were back in the flat, Lexi went and put on Beauty and the Beast while Callum sorted out a glass of milk for each of them. He also took the chance to text Ben to let him know they were at the flat.

“Can I switch your laptop on, Callum?” Lexi called from the living room.

“Yeah, Lex,” Callum replied coming out of the kitchen with their snack. “That’s it sitting there on the table.”

“Thank you, Callum,” Lexi smiled as she grabbed the laptop and settled back on the sofa.

Lexi and Callum spent the next twenty minutes looking at some of the dog shelters’ websites, however, there was one in Battersea that Lexi fell in love with the minute she saw it. To be honest, so did Callum; 4-year-old lurcher called Bisto. Okay, so he would need some training, but he needed to be in a quiet home and could suffer from separation anxiety. All in all, he appeared to be the perfect fit to their little family Callum thought.

“See, he could go to work with daddy,” Lexi smiled when Callum mentioned the separation anxiety. “Or you could come up and visit him when you’re not busy.”

Callum just smiled and nodded he didn’t want to upset Lexi in the same way that he had upset Ben when he told him of his career change. Lexi didn’t need to know about his becoming a police officer until it was confirmed.

“Callum, what does Bisto mean?” Lexi suddenly asked.

“It’s a make of gravy,” Callum answered, which caused Lexi to laugh. “Adverts used to say ‘Ahhh Bisto!’.”

Lexi’s laugh was infectious, and soon Callum was laughing along with her. That was how Ben found them when he popped back to the flat.

“Seems like this is the better party to be at,” Ben said as he tried to place a kiss to Callum’s lips then Lexi’s forehead. “What’s got you two laughing so hard?”

“Gravy,” Lexi said through her laughter.

Ben, still confused, looked to Callum for clarification.

“Lex’s been asking about dogs again,” Callum explained as he calmed down. “An’ to be ‘onest, I’ve been thinkin’ about asking Billy an’ Honey what the policy on pets. So, we were lookin’ at rescue dogs.”

“This one’s perfect for us, daddy,” Lexi said turning on her charm. “He’s called Bisto, needs a quiet home, and sometimes gets scared when he’s left alone. That means he could come to work with you.”

“I dunno, baby,” Ben said as he stroked Lexi’s hair back from her face. “Maybe we’re best not committing to a dog until we know what your pops says about dogs.”

“And Stuart,” Lexi added.

“Stuart will be fine with a dog,” Callum smiled. “Besides, it’s my name on the lease…”

“What breed?” Ben suddenly asked to distract Callum from the swamp that was his brother.

“Lurcher,” Callum supplied. “Don’t worry, we ruled out the small handbag-sized ones that Lola would go for. Madam wasn’t for having them on the list.”

“Good,” Ben smiled before his phone buzzed. Ben looked at it before kissing Callum and Lexi again. “I’m going to have to go, Lola’s going spare at the club. You two okay without me?”

“Yeah, daddy,” Lexi smiled. “Cal and me are having pizza for dinner. And tell mummy and Jay hi.”

“I will, baby,” Ben smiled at his daughter, before turning to Callum. “Dinner’s on me, I’ll leave the money on the table at the top of the stairs.”

“Ya don’ have to,” Callum said.

“My treat since I’m pretty much abandoning you two to deal with my sister’s drama,” Ben said as he pressed another kiss to Callum’s lips. “I’ll see you two later.”

After Ben left, Callum and Lexi went back to doing their research on lurchers and just dogs in general. If they were going to be adding to their family, they needed to be as knowledgeable as possible.

This is a picture of Bisto the dog from the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home (I enjoyed this research).


End file.
